President Trump has started speaking at a special address to the World Economic Forum. Trump’s speech at Davos will be keenly watched by the global markets, keeping the traders and investors on edge. How the financial markets react on Wednesday to President Donald Trump’s speech remains to be seen.
“Today is a big one for markets as we look ahead to Trump’s speech at the WEF annual meeting at 1:30 pm GMT. However, this may be delayed following an electrical issue, causing Air Force One to return to base. His speech is particularly prominent amid mounting tensions between Europe and Washington, with neither side backing down as of writing regarding Trump’s intention to acquire Greenland. How far Trump will go to achieve this is difficult to estimate, though he recently noted that ‘you’ll find out’ when pressed on the matter,” says Aaron Hill, chief market analyst at FP Markets.
US stock futures held steady on Wednesday after the major averages fell the day before due to rising tensions between Washington and Europe over President Donald Trump’s ambition to take over Greenland.
Tariff Threat
Over the weekend, Trump threatened to put extra tariffs on eight European countries that oppose the proposal unless an agreement is made. He will meet with various stakeholders to discuss Greenland at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday.
Trump wrote on his Truth Social network that the eight European countries would face 10% U.S. import tariffs on Feb. 1 and 25% tariffs beginning June 1 “until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland.”
Market Reaction
The Dow plummeted 1.76%, the S&P 500 sank 2.06%, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.39% during normal trading on Tuesday, all of which had their worst daily results since October 10. As the dollar declined, US Treasury yields also increased, indicating a decline in trust in US assets and worries that Europe’s sizable holdings of US stocks and bonds may be used as leverage.
“Markets are once again confronting a familiar spectre: the ‘Sell America’ trade that broke out in April following Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs. Despite equity index futures showing a modest rebound on Wednesday, yesterday’s risk-off environment has left its mark,” adds Hill.
Amidst the rising global uncertainty, the rush for safe-haven assets is pushing prices of gold and silver higher. Gold jumped to an all-time high of $4,859 a troy ounce, bringing the precious metal’s one-year return to nearly 80%.
Gold prices have risen 12% since the start of 2026, compared with the benchmark S&P 500 stock index, which saw its small year-to-date gains erased on Tuesday morning.
Silver prices also soared to an all-time high on Wednesday, trading at $95, adding to big gains this year and putting the metal’s 12-month return at 213%.